Glibenclamide was discovered in 1969 and approved for medical use in the United States in 1984.[4][1] It is available as a generic medication.[3] In 2021, it was the 214th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 2million prescriptions.[5][6]
Medical uses
Glibenclamide is indicated as an adjunct to diet and exercise to improve glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes.[2]
Frequently reported side effects include: nausea, heartburn, weight gain, and bloating.[8] The medication is also a major cause of medication-induced hypoglycemia. The risk is greater than with other sulfonylureas.[9]
This results in an increase in intracellular calcium in the pancreatic beta cell and subsequent stimulation of insulin release.[13]
After a cerebral ischemic insult, the blood–brain barrier is broken and glibenclamide can reach the central nervous system. Glibenclamide has been shown to bind more efficiently to the ischemic hemisphere.[14] Moreover, under ischemic conditions SUR1, the regulatory subunit of the KATP- and the NCCa-ATP-channels, is expressed in neurons, astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, endothelial cells[15] and by reactive microglia.[14]
As per the research papers, this sulphonylurea drugs also has extra hepatic effects. It works by inhibiting the enzyme Carnityl Acyl Transferase I (CAT-I) indirectly which is present in the mitochondria. This prevents the transport of long chain fatty acids into the mitochondria for beta-oxidation. This prevents hyperglycemia for which it is prescribed.[16][17]
Glibenclamide is available as a generic medication, is manufactured by many pharmaceutical companies and is sold under many brand names including Gliben-J, Daonil,[19] Diabeta,[20] Euglucon, Gilemal, Glidanil, Glybovin, Glynase, Maninil, Micronase and Semi-Daonil. It is also available in a fixed-dose combination drug with metformin that is sold under various trade names, e.g. Bagomet Plus, Benimet, Glibomet, Gluconorm, Glucored, Glucovance, Metglib and many others.[21]
^Chen S, Ogawa A, Ohneda M, Unger RH, Foster DW, McGarry JD (July 1994). "More direct evidence for a malonyl-CoA-carnitine palmitoyltransferase I interaction as a key event in pancreatic beta-cell signaling". Diabetes. 43 (7): 878–883. doi:10.2337/diab.43.7.878. PMID8013751. S2CID25251669.
^Lehtihet M, Welsh N, Berggren PO, Cook GA, Sjoholm A (August 2003). "Glibenclamide inhibits islet carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 activity, leading to PKC-dependent insulin exocytosis". American Journal of Physiology. Endocrinology and Metabolism. 285 (2): E438 –E446. doi:10.1152/ajpendo.00057.2003. PMID12684219. S2CID175394.